Fresh Off the Boat, season 4 (19 episodes)
release year: 2017-18
genre: comedy/drama
viewing setting: home streaming 10/8-19/25)
synopsis: This comedy/drama series recreates the adventures of a Taiwanese family who move to Florida to start a restaurant and are constantly balancing their own heritage/behavior and that of the country they live and work in.
impressions: The fourth season's focus expanded a bit to include various schoolmates and friends. Some of the events of this season: Michael Bolton drops out of the reastaurant as Kenny Rogers buys his share and sends a dorky transition manager, Evan skips a grade, Eddia and Alison break up, the neighbors decide to have a child, Halloween devolves into chaos, Jessica tries to talk to her father, diversity rears its head, JEssica keeps working on her crappy book, a guest star helps the neighborhood Christmas caroling effort, Louis thinks Eddie is becoming a grown man, Eddie applies himself at school, Jessica and Honey go on a road trip to talk to Stephen King.
acting: Same ensemble cast. Constance Wu is the mother, who's obsessed to a fault with success, perfection, and spending as little money as possible. Randall Park is her husband, who's juggling his fmaily and business. Hudson Yang is the oldest brother, who's moving from clever slacker to being a little more responsible. Forrest Wheeler is the middle brother, who's starting to take interest in the more normal aspects of being in high school. Ian Chen is the youngest brother, who sets high goals for himself and is a bit off. Lucille Soong is the often-plotting grandmother, full of sarcasm and wisdom in equal doses. Chelsey Crisp and Ray Wise are the neighbors who bring their own quirks and friendship to the dynamic.
final word: Fun and easy to watch for doses of realistic humor.
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